Test Everything Beside the Word
This is hard. This is something that I was moved to write this week and God has been prodding me to edit it and post it. And honestly, I don’t want to. I’ve been fighting it. I don’t want people to stop following my blog. Wow. Saying that sounds so silly.
This morning, I read in Acts 5. You can go read it. The apostles were put in prison for teaching the Truth and speaking of Christ. Let’s read what happen during the night:
But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life. Acts 5:19 & 20
In the morning they were found in the temple and the authorities brought them and told them they were told not to preach Christ’s name anymore. Read verse 29-
Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
Ouch. I need to obey God rather than the FEAR I have of men. SO here goes. And if you need to, I’m ok with you clicking the unsubscribe button (you can find it at the bottom of every email I send you)
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We have to be careful of people and writings and words we hear that are not completely true.
They may not be completely false either.
They just let on that it is wrong and lead you to believe it is the truth.
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Let me give you an example. Recently I read an arictle about WWW (World Wide Web) They explain that in the Hebrew language it means 666. Then they add on that they don’t want any involvement in it; they stay clear away from it. The article goes on with some other topic, yet your mind stays back there.
You heard the WWW being 666 and that the writer stays far away from it.
Your mind tries to tell you that is true. That you should stay completely away from it.
Before long, all your computers are sitting at Goodwill.
This is how our natural mind works. It can get us into trouble. It can lead us down the wrong path. Instead, we need to train our minds to run to the Truth.
So let’s break down the truth in this:
- Does WWW mean 666 in Hebrew, yes it does.
- Is the WWW something we MUST stay away from? Maybe.
- Is using the Web a sin? NO
Let me share something with you.
The internet is Amoral. Meaning by its self it is neither good moral or bad moral. Meaning by it’s self is not evil or good.
Money is also Amoral. Money, it can be used for evil – it can be used for good.
Just like the internet, it can be used for good. It can be used for bad. It is Amoral.
It may be true. We may need to stay clear away from the world wide web. It may lead us down paths that we shouldn’t go on. YET it may be ok for us. It may be a wonderful tool we can use for encouragement, for connecting with others and encouraging each other.
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That is just one small example of what I’m warning you (and me) of. We are met with all kinds of thoughts for our mind to sort.
When we are met with these thoughts, no matter if it comes through
- something we read,
- something we watch,
- something we hear
- someone we meet
No matter if it comes through
- a friend
- trusted church official
- a fellow church goer
- a family member
- a Facebook friend
- a well known author
(This list includes me and this blog!)
We need to take it ALL back to the Truth. We need to go to God. We need to go to the Bible. We need to run to the Truth and sift through the thought, idea or opinion with the Word. We need to test everything we are exposed to; each book, each blog post, each thought, using the Word.
We need to look at ourself and ask God what we can handle. Ask God what we are called to be a part of or not be a part of. This is something, as adults, we need to search out for ourselves. We need to listen to the Holy Spirit guiding us in these things.
We need to be careful of those people, that push us further than what we believe and push us closer to what they believe, push us further from the Truth God wants for our lives.
These people and these attitudes are contagious.
Believe me.
This attitude used to be my friend.
And again. My post got too long and this had to be split into two separate posts. If you could, please wait till after you read the next one before you unsubscribe. 🙂